


Hope in a Mandalorian

by Lastavica



Category: The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Father-Son Relationship, Foundlings, Friendship, Gen, Grogu melts my heart, Hope, Memories, One Shot, Peace, Protective Din Djarin, Quiet moments in hyperspace, Sanctuary, Solidarity, The Razor Crest - Freeform, This Is The Way, post chapter 4, time to think
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-05
Updated: 2021-02-05
Packaged: 2021-03-16 18:15:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 977
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29211762
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lastavica/pseuds/Lastavica
Summary: Din has time to think after fleeing Sorgan with the kid. They're more alike than he realized.
Comments: 6
Kudos: 20





	Hope in a Mandalorian

**Author's Note:**

> This begins where chapter 4 ends. Leaving Sorgan.

It was almost sundown when they finally reached The Razor Crest. Immediately Din got to work unloading the repulsorlift. The little one sat watching from a bed of pine needles, happily munching little blue crustaceans one after another. The villagers had sent them off with generous bag of krill for him. Din was grateful as the gift kept his small companion occupied while he returned his weapons and supplies to the ship.

"That's everything." he finally said and gave the craft two thumps with his fist. The droid beeped, piloted in reverse and slowly disappeared into the darkening wood. The two fugitives watched it go, both wishing they could return with it. But it was impossible. Many more with tracking fobs were sure to follow. Nothing had changed since The Mandalorian had first gone out for the bounty. The Imps were still after the kid and more than willing to pay any price.

They would need to leave Sorgan that night.

"Come on, kid." Din said as he turned from the trees. "We've gotta get moving."

He carried him into the ship and worked quickly to stow all the gear. Once that was done, he settled into the cockpit and got The Razor Crest off planet.

The blackness of the glaxay and its billions and billions of lights were waiting for them as they left the atmosphere. It promised nothing and contained everything. When they reached the nearest hyperpace lane Din finally breathed easy. Moving sub light with a high value target made his skin crawl with anticipation. As the blue tunnel of hyperspace filled his vision, he let himself be lulled by it. The low hum of the ship enveloped the cockpit in a peaceful quiet.

From the chair behind him came a little squeak followed by a few breathy vocalizations. Din turned, breaking out of his reverie.

"What's on your mind, kid?" During the weeks they'd spent on Sorgan he'd grown more accumstomed to the kid's range of sounds and expressions.

The little guy lifted his arms. His silent communication always proved the most effective. Beneath the beskar Din couldn't supress a smile. Without hesitation he reached over, picked him up and on set him on the consol beside him.

"Better?"

The reply was a happy sounding coo as he set his big eyes on the luminous, ever changing sight before him. Din leaned back in the pilot's chair, relaxing into the moment again. He enjoyed the view of two fuzzy ears silhouetted against the amorphous blue. The child became completely preoccupied with the beauty of hyperspace all around them. He looked out to the sides and lifted his gaze to see the same view above. All the while his mouth was agape in awe. Din found himself wondering again where the kid came from before Arvala-7. Fifty years. He was older than him, lived a whole life already. Yet here he was, a child nonetheless. A foundling.

"I was like you, you know." His helmeted voice came out quiet. The kid turned his way, clearly listening.

"It's true." He added. "I was a foundling."

As the Razor Crest continued at light speed, the mezmerizing glow of hyperspace danced in Din's helmet and across his visor. It had been a long time since he'd really taken the time to look, to really see it.

"The same thing happened to me." It was a whisper, a realization.

The kid was still watching him, the shifting light reflecting in his huge brown eyes.

As a little boy Din had hidden behind metal doors and waited for the end. When he looked into the barrel of a droid's weapon he knew he could not cry out for his parents. They were dead at the monster's feet. But, before his eyes, that monster was destroyed. Daylight flooded in and he had found hope in a Mandalorian. Din had come to this child just as the tribe had come to him. This child had also been alone, encased in cold metal, knowing nothing outside of that cramped place would spare him. The IG unit had trained a blaster on him and a Mandalorian put an end to the droid. With it littered at his feet, he reached out to the little one and the little one reached back.

In the cool blues and whites of hyperspace, soothed by the hum of his ship and the company of his small friend, Din remembered it. The kid had gone back to admiring the view, murmuring small squeaks of contentment here and there. From behind his treasured beskar Din found himself smiling. He had been that Mandalorian to this foundling. In a blur of guilt, resolve and blaster fire he'd claimed the child with his life. After weeks spent in the peace of the village and the quiet of the forest, his dedication had entrenched itself in deep affection. Din didn't know how long the child had lived as a captive, but to watch him wander freely and joyfully with other children only reinforced the choice to protect him at any cost. There in the stillness of the Razor Crest's cockpit, The Mandalorian consciously built upon that choice. He knew what it was like to be small and afraid, and he would be like beskar to the foundling.

Helmet resting easily against his chair, Din continued to watch as the little one delighted in the stars and planets melting past.

The child was not afraid. He was traveling at lightspeed, far away from anyone who wanted to harm him. He spent his nights sleeping under the watch of a warrior clad in gleaming beskar. He ate his fill and played without worry. When he went out in the world it was in the arms of a Mandalorian. After uncounted years in darkness, he had hope again. And he'd found it in a Mandalorian.


End file.
